The present invention relates to a tone-generation timing control device and method capable of controlling, as intended by a human operator, generation timing of each sound to be automatically performed by an automatic performance device. In other words, the present invention relates to an automatic roll-sound performance device and method.
Automatic performance devices have been extensively known and used today, in which various performance information, such as note data relating to individual notes of melody and accompaniment performances, are prestored in memory and the prestored performance information is automatically read out from the memory at a predetermined tempo to generate melody, accompaniment and rhythm sounds in accordance with the read-out performance information. In these automatic performance devices, the performance tempo is determined by a frequency of tempo clock pulses output from a timer or the like. The performance tempo of an entire music piece can be varied optionally by varying the tempo clock frequency such as via a tempo setting switch.
In performing or audibly generating rhythm sounds, such as percussive sounds, a style of rendition called "roll" is often employed which generates rhythm sounds successively at equal short time intervals. Further, there have been known two main schemes for preparing (sounding) a rhythm with such a roll effect: the "real-time input" scheme where tone data are prepared in accordance with an actual performance by a human player or operator; and the "step-time input" scheme where tone data are prepared by entry of numerical values.
In the real-time input scheme, precision of tone data to be prepared depends greatly on the performance ability or skill of the player. Thus, it is extremely difficult to prepare tone data of rhythm sounds with a roll effect which are to be sounded at very short time intervals and hence very difficult for a human player to perform. In such a case, the rhythm sounds with a roll effect which are to be sounded at very short time intervals can be generated relatively easily by first executing an actual performance at a slower tempo for the purpose of recording tone data of the performance and then reproducing the recorded tone data at a normal tempo.
In the step-time input scheme, tone data of rhythm sounds corresponding to a desired roll effect are prepared merely by entering numerical values such that the rhythm sounds are generated at desired time intervals. Degree of the roll effect can be checked by actually reproducing the prepared tone data.
However, in the case where the real-time input scheme is used to prepare tone data of rhythm sounds with a roll effect, then a series of troublesome tone data creating operations has to be repeated if the prepared tone data are not exactly as desired. In the case where the step-time input scheme is used, a multiplicity of tone data with equal intervals have to be prepared taking a long entry time, and besides the rhythm sounds can not be verified during preparation of the tone data.